NEWARK , May 12, 2000 - Preliminary findings from a study by New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) on Personalized Weapons Technology will be announced at a two-day symposium on Tuesday and Wednesday, May 16 and 17, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Guttenberg Information Technology Center, 218 Lock Street (Corner of Central and Lock) in Newark. A special demonstration for members of the press will be held on Tuesday, May 16 at 10 a.m.

The symposium, "Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems Biometric Sensors for Personalized Weapons: Can We Make a Smart Gun?," is co-sponsored by NJIT and the National Institute of Justice. The two-day event will present the interim results of an NJIT study to analyze the scientific feasibility of personalized weapons technologies and estimate time frames for implementation. The study is funded with a $1 million grant from the State of New Jersey.

The symposium will feature presentations from NJIT on applications of Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) for personalized weapons, and from several manufacturers on existing products using currently available technologies. Representative Jack Collins, Speaker of the New Jersey Assembly, is scheduled to address the symposium on May 16th at noon. United States Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. is invited to speak at noon on May 17th. A symposium agenda and directions are attached.

"This symposium will provide an overview of the current state of technology in gun safety devices and challenges to the successful development of personalized weapons," said Donald Sebastian, NJIT Associate Provost for Research and Development. "We have made a deliberate effort to include participation from public and private interests expressing the full range of views concerning the 'smart gun' issue," he added.

The initial phase of the study involved an assessment of technologies that are currently offered for commercial adoption, and research on biometric identification systems with a potential use in a personalized weapon. The research team consulted manufacturers and other experts, reviewed the patent and technical literature as well as previous efforts to develop "smart gun" technologies, and launched a web site to provide public access to information. Technologies investigated in the study include mechanical locks for different parts of the gun, holster lock-and-release mechanisms, locks activated by radio transmitters and magnetic rings worn by the user, and biometric recognition systems.

Sebastian gave the example of a fingerprint sensor to illustrate the idea behind biometric identification. "While there are a number of shortcomings to relying solely on fingerprint identification, we do believe that a safety system based on automatic recognition of some physical attribute of the authorized gun user is the only sure route to a 'child-safe' weapon," said Sebastian.

There has been promising research by NJIT on the application of MEMS technology to identify biological characteristics that can distinguish authorized from non-authorized gun users. NJIT expertise in the MEMS area is extensive, including patents for silicon chip design and manufacturing, and the state's only Class 10 clean room in an academic setting.

With the technology for personalized weapons on the horizon, the need to develop standards and criteria is a consideration for the future. NJIT research suggests that objective, industry-wide standards for performance and reliability and an independent means of evaluation should be in place before contemplating commercial introduction of any proposed technology.

NJIT is a public research university enrolling over 8,200 bachelor's, master's and doctoral students in 87 degree programs through five colleges: Newark College of Engineering, New Jersey School of Architecture, College of Science and Liberal Arts, the School of Management and the Albert Dorman Honors College. Research initiatives include manufacturing, microelectronics, multimedia, transportation, computer science, solar astrophysics, environmental engineering and science, and architecture and building science.

Yahoo! Internet Life magazine has ranked NJIT "America's most wired public university" for three consecutive years, U.S. News and World Report's 1999 Annual Guide to America's Best Colleges ranked NJIT among the nation's top universities, and Money magazine's most recent issue of Best College Buys rated NJIT as the sixth best value among U.S. science and technology schools and among the top 100 overall. In September 1999, Mademoiselle ranked NJIT as the second most Internet-connected university in the nation.